Quick Facts

• Capital: Yellowknife
• Population of Yellownife: 17,275
• Motto: Land of the Midnight Sun
• Flower: Mountain Avens
• Entered Confederation: 15 July 1870
• Members of the Legislative Assembly: 19
• Members of Parliament: 1
• Senators: 1
• Population, 2000: 42,154
• Average annual family income, 1996: n/a
• Employment rate, 1997: n/a
• Per capita health expenditures, 1995: $5,329
• Inflation as measured by the CPI, 1997: .01
• Average weekly earnings, 1997: $725.72
• Housing starts, 1997: n/a
• Provincial sales tax, 1998: 0%
• Urban population, 1996: 42.5%
• GDP per capita, 1995: $35,197
• Land area out of Canada's total area 67,879: 11.1%

Geography

Canada's Northwest Territories (N.W.T.) are above Saskatchewan, Alberta, and eastern British Columbia and lie between the Yukon and Nunavut north of the 60th parallel.
The size of the Northwest Territories changed on April 1, 1999,with the creation of Nunavut. The area of the former Northwest Territories, which stretched from the Yukon east to Baffin Island and included all of the Arctic archipelago, was reduced by approximately two-thirds, from 3,426,320 km2 to 1,171,918 km2. This is not the first time that the Northwest Territories has undergone dramatic boundary changes. At one point or another during the N.W.T.'s history, it has included all of Alberta, Saskatchewan and the Yukon and most of Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec.
The Northwest Territories, "the Land of the Midnight Sun" can be divided into two broad geographical regions:

• taiga, a boreal forest belt that circles the sub arctic zone, including most of the Northwest Territories.
• tundra, the vast, rocky plain in the Arctic regions, where the extreme climate has stunted vegetation.

Northwest Territories’ main Lakes / Rivers are:

• Great Bear Lake (31328 km2), is the eighth largest lake in the world;
• Great Slave Lake (28 568 km2) is the tenth largest lake in the world);
• Mackenzie River - Canada's longest river flows 4241 km from the Great Slave Lake to the Beaufort Sea.

Government

The N.W.T. government has the same general responsibilities as provincial governments: taxation, municipal bodies, education, wildlife, health and hospital services, forest management, housing, social services and economic development.
As a Territory the NWT does not have full provincial status, although it achieved a style of government similar to that of the provinces in 1979. The Canadian government retains administrative control over water, land and forestry and the development of all non-renewable resources (i.e. minerals, oil and gas).
The issue of settling Aboriginal land claims in the N.W.T. emerged in the 1970s. In 1984 a final agreement was reached with the Inuvialuit of the western Arctic; it provided some 2500 people with 91 000 km2 of land, financial compensation, social development funding, hunting rights and a greater role in wildlife management, conservation and environmental protection. In 1992, the Gwich'in settled a comprehensive land claim that provided 22,422 km2 of land in the Yukon; subsurface rights; a share in the resource royalties derived from the Mackenzie River Valley; tax-free capital transfers; hunting rights; a greater role in the management of wildlife, land and the environment; and the right of first refusal on a variety of activities related to wildlife. The settling of northern land claims sets the stage for increased economic activity in which all can share and have a voice. However, development, which is welcome and necessary for economic prosperity, will need to be managed so as not to threaten the fragile Arctic ecosystem and the traditional lifestyles of the northern peoples.
The year 1993 saw the conclusion of the Nunavut land claims agreement, the largest land claim ever settled in Canada. The agreement divided the NWT east and west and gave the Inuit of the eastern Arctic control of more than 350 000 km2 of land. In April 1999 the former Northwest Territories was divided, creating the new territory of Nunavut.

History

The ancestors of the present day Dene peoples lived along the Mackenzie Valley in the N.W.T. 10 000 years ago. The first Inuit are believed to have crossed the Bering Strait about 5000 years ago, spreading east along the Arctic coast. In 1789, Alexander Mackenzie 'discovered' the Mackenzie River and followed it to its mouth at the Arctic Ocean. Fur traders soon established posts in the Mackenzie River basin. Late in the next century religious missions were founded in the area. The Europeans reshaped the North bringing with them a new economy and way of life. Through the following years communities grew around trading posts, mission schools and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) stations.
In 1870, the British government transferred control of the North-Western Territory to Canada. Ten years later the British government annexed the islands of the Arctic Archipelago that also became part of the North West Territories.
In 1905, both Alberta and Saskatchewan were created from the Northwest Territories landbase. Finally in 1912, the provinces of Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec were enlarged, fixing the Northwest Territories with a size and shape that remained unchanged until 1999, when Nunavut was established. By World War II, mineral exploration and the military were playing a role in northern development, prompting a more active interest in the N.W.T. by the rest of Canada.

People

The present population of the N.W.T. is approximately 40 000 Dene, Inuvialuit and Métis make up 48%, non-Aboriginals about 52%. Most live in small communities; Yellowknife, the capital, has a population of more than 15 000.

Economy

A large portion to the Northwest Territories population continues to rely on the Aboriginal peoples' traditional subsistence activities; fishing, hunting and trapping. Fur harvesting continues to be very important, supplementing the income of many Aboriginal families.
Mining is by far the largest private industrial sector of the N.W.T. economy. Oil and gas exploration and development are also important and diamond mining is expected to be a major industry in the 21st century.